I'll never begrudge anyone the right to like or dislike whatever they happen to like or dislike, but...
...syrupy standards singer who didn't write any of her tunes (but a handful -- all of which are beautiful) or produce anything remarkably original ... too pop for jazz circles and too Americanized for Brazilians ...
It drives me insane when people use certain criticisms about music or musicians. (And I know you're not using them, you're saying others did.) The criticism of a performer not writing or producing is absurd to me. Nobody criticizes an architect who can't build a building, or vice versa. It's admittedly cool when someone is excellent across the whole process, but it's also tremendously rare. Most people are good at one thing, and
maybe competent at some others. The very, very rare person is great across the board. So that said, is it fair to criticize those who are excellent at something, but not excellent at some related (but separate) thing? I say, strenuously, NO.
Astrud Gilberto is a
brilliant singer. That makes listening to recordings of her performances fully worthwhile and rewarding, without worrying whether she wrote the song, played on the recording, or produced the recording.
Then to address the part about whether the music is jazz enough or Brazilian enough (or anything else), well, let's just say I think it's similarly bullshit. In the 60s, we saw a new kind of music based on exactly this kind of thing, and I guess most specifically on Girl From Ipanema. That's to be celebrated, not criticized! Without fusing and crossing over and pushing of boundaries, there is nothing but retreading territory in what rapidly becomes pastiche, imitation. Besides--and I say this as a jazz guy myself, so with plenty of humor and self-criticism--jazz guys are exclusive, elitist dicks, for the most part, quick to isolate even giants (Miles Davis, anyone?) for straying too far from the doctrine.
In closing, Astrud Gilberto is great. Forever and ever amen.